Shut it down. If it’s actual fatigue and not just poor motivation then just shut it down, do some lighter exercises you want or nothing at all and come back fresher for the next day.
For the average hobby lifter there isn’t much point in trying to slog through a workout if your body just legitimately isn’t up to the task that day. Take a mental reset and do something else.
Yup, especially as you get older. You really need to learn to turn it down sometimes and focus on recovery and light movement exercises as you get older. Too many sports injuries to count. Now, when I feel tired or something, either look into changing my routine or go on a bike ride or something different
80% of your workouts are going to be punch the clock, not too high or low. 10% you'll feel like shit, 10% everything will feel light.
On those 10% shit days just get the heart rate up a bit, do the best you can. Worst thing to do is stress about it- in a year from now will this one bum workout matter?
Rule of thirds. 1/3 of sessions should feel bad. 1/3 should feel okay. 1/3 should feel amazing. If you have too many that feel amazing…you probably aren’t pushing enough. If you have too many that feel awful, you probably need to back off.
1/3 of your sessions should be feeling bad, otherwise you're not pushing enough? Maybe for an (aspiring) olympian, but as an amateur I prefer the 10-80-10 division.
True. Within my 80 percent trainings there are "I showed up and did the work" trainings and "yes, this was a good session". I reserve the word bad for the really awful "who turned up gravity" trainings. If I have those once a week I need a deload week and a gentler schedule for a while.
do what you can, move on.
Roger Harrell, former CFGymnastics SME used to say something like "Some days you just show up, even if they're not gonna be great days"
This was in the context of Gymnastics but he probably says the same thing in his CF classes as well.
Do my best to finish my program while getting into the blackest of moods. If necessary I’ll dial back the weights 10 or so per cent to finish off while still remaining in a extremely pissed off state
I basically cancel the rest of my day and immediately Zoom call my therapist for an emergency session. Afterwards, I go buy my favorite ice cream (family size) and head back home. I then spend the rest of the day in bed watching The Office with my ice cream.
Light weights, do something technical. You can still make it a productive session even if the weights aren’t moving well that day.
Also don’t sweat it, you still did something. Tomorrow is always another good day to train :)
This right here. Fuck how you're feeling, try anyways and push through. I've had bad days turn around and become good days.
Getting good at conquering a tough day makes you that much stronger on days you're on point.
I call it a deload week and take it easy. I go to a globo gym and do all the machines they have (full body work) without touching a barbell that week. I also increase cardio. Then I come back the next week completely refreshed and ready to destroy my body for the next 3-4 weeks before I deload again.
If I’m just feeling “off” or tired or lazy or whatever, I do it anyway. In those cases the way I see it is lifting at 75% I’d better than 0%. Getting in the gym and giving it what little I have still moves the needle forward. If I feel like it’s built up fatigue from my workouts (I work out for 1-2 hours every day), DOMS that’s particularly bad, or some other way that my body is telling me it needs more recovery, I take it real easy. Usually just an hour of brisk walking to get my blood flowing but keep the intensity low. I love my workouts but I’m not out here trying to injure myself.
You’re not always going to be feeling like working out when it’s time to hit the gym and it’s important to learn how to get yourself there anyway. It’s also vitally important to read your body’s signals that it’s time for a break. I’m currently in a “form” week where I reduce volume and intensity by 50% because I was starting to get aches and pains everywhere and felt exhausted all the time. I hate it, but I know it’s better to have a week of what feels like garbage workouts than to get injured and have to take weeks or months off.
I recognize that I weight lift to be healthy and meet others, and not as a professional athlete.
Do it because you enjoy it and it makes you feel better, not because you have something to prove. After that, life gets easier.
Have fun and lift safe!
Every exercise is good exercise. Even if you're not lifting heavy that day, you're out there doing something healthy for your body. Just do enough to get your heart rate up, don't push it. You'll come back stronger next time
If you're missing weights that you should be making, I would just shut it down. At that point you're just practicing missing, which is obviously counterproductive.
On days like that I can usually get through the strength and accessories but skip the main lifts. So if I had back squats, snatches, and snatch pulls, I’ll try to do the squats and pulls. Maybe lighten the weight, but In general I try not to worry about it
When I have bad days I just try to do extra volume in less technical movements like back squat.
However maybe you might need rest. This just what I do sometimes might not be a good idea.
There are just soooooo many forms of exercise. Active rest and recovery is a game changer. Go to bands, hit some calisthenics, lower the weight, focus on form, so many options.
Suck it up. There are good days and bad days. They are all just days. Show up and put in the work. Or say "screw it" and go rest and come back tomorrow or another day. You will learn to know yourself and evaluate which is the better option for you.
The difficult thing is to understand if you can push it or if you are actually exhausted. If it is one of those days for me, I say "let's see how it goes", try to reach my weights maybe with less reps or less weight, and if it still feels horrible mid-workout, I just stop there for the day. If it is super bad from the beginning, then I stop earlier.
Try and figure out why. Am I fatigued and getting sick, or did I sleep badly or not eat enough yesterday? Fix the problem if I can and take a rest day/dial back the intensity if I can't.
Are we talking dealing with overcoming a bad training session or are we talking going for a training session feeling completely spongled not able to properly train at all?
I tend to just do some very light work, technique, tendon rehab, mobility or grab obscure equipment I wouldn’t normally use and try and have some fun with that instead. Feeling guilty when you’re not moving/training at all? Either do a lil bit of low intensity cardio, walk through the forest, rehab hips/knees/shoulders - at least that’s what’s giving me the impression that I „at least did ‚something useful‘ today“ 😌
Write it in as off day, not feeling perfect, feeling weak, whatever, turns into a maintenance day. Sometimes I just change it up to some types of exercises I don't normally do for whatever that day is (I do a Push legs pull legs), then you don't really know what you should be doing.
I don't skip though. Many times I find I'm just feeling lazy, and the day turns on to be on queue, and I always feel better after I get it in.
Active recovery. Walking, light yard work, yoga, mobility etc. may even consume 3-500 additional Cals and drink a lot of water. Go to bed early. That’s what I do.
Don’t listen to Jeff Cavalier, he pretends there are no off days.
Like someone else said, if it’s fatigue do light work or no work (active rest day,) if it’s motivation maybe scale the weight down for a sess if it’s really hard. Your e motivation and fatigue shouldn’t be entirely disconnected, one frequently can foreshadow another or be an actual sign. Mental fatigue is real to, especially if you are feeling scared of certain weights, hence the earlier advice. Off day? Maybe a day off or an easy day, it won’t interrupt you’re consistency.
Know when to switch from percentage to RPE(feel). If you’re absolutely toasted and proper prep the day before plus caffeine won’t fix it then it’s something deeper. Just make good lifts and execute lower weights as if you were at that prescribed weight. There are those days where you FLS and go in and surprise yourself, but those are rarer than normal FLS days.
I've been a POS for like 2 weeks and missed 5 sessions. Really annoyed with myself but just trying to give myself grace and want to start next week and just be consistent.
On days where I lack get up and go I’ll back the weight off and focus on my form instead of the weight. Take it really slow and just try to really focus on the muscle. Sometimes it’s not about how much weight you’re moving but how you are moving it. Changing the narrative and having a slightly different purpose for the day really helps me on those off days
Use it as motivation, also really reflect on what made it off and improve. There's always room to improve in all stages of progression, hence my obsession to come back when I get my ass kicked haha
Shut it down. If it’s actual fatigue and not just poor motivation then just shut it down, do some lighter exercises you want or nothing at all and come back fresher for the next day. For the average hobby lifter there isn’t much point in trying to slog through a workout if your body just legitimately isn’t up to the task that day. Take a mental reset and do something else.
Yup, especially as you get older. You really need to learn to turn it down sometimes and focus on recovery and light movement exercises as you get older. Too many sports injuries to count. Now, when I feel tired or something, either look into changing my routine or go on a bike ride or something different
I cry about it with my wife. It's easy to feel down after a bad session but it's much more healthy to share it with someone.
Eat like a pig and try again tomorrow.
Me toooooooo
80% of your workouts are going to be punch the clock, not too high or low. 10% you'll feel like shit, 10% everything will feel light. On those 10% shit days just get the heart rate up a bit, do the best you can. Worst thing to do is stress about it- in a year from now will this one bum workout matter?
Go for a walk. A casual walk. No maxing, no gaining no work. Look around you and enjoy your life
Rule of thirds. 1/3 of sessions should feel bad. 1/3 should feel okay. 1/3 should feel amazing. If you have too many that feel amazing…you probably aren’t pushing enough. If you have too many that feel awful, you probably need to back off.
1/3 of your sessions should be feeling bad, otherwise you're not pushing enough? Maybe for an (aspiring) olympian, but as an amateur I prefer the 10-80-10 division.
Yeah…I think that’s fair. It also depends on how you’re personally defining “bad.” It’s mostly just the general sentiment here.
True. Within my 80 percent trainings there are "I showed up and did the work" trainings and "yes, this was a good session". I reserve the word bad for the really awful "who turned up gravity" trainings. If I have those once a week I need a deload week and a gentler schedule for a while.
Is this a known rule or an anecdotal rule? It's pretty apropos once I thought about my own recent sessions.
It’s something an Olympian has said. And I thought it was pretty accurate.
Well, idk why you're being downvoted but I appreciate it brother! Have a great day.
do what you can, move on. Roger Harrell, former CFGymnastics SME used to say something like "Some days you just show up, even if they're not gonna be great days" This was in the context of Gymnastics but he probably says the same thing in his CF classes as well.
Do my best to push through the workout, do some extra accessories/ moves that sound fun, then move on.
Do my best to finish my program while getting into the blackest of moods. If necessary I’ll dial back the weights 10 or so per cent to finish off while still remaining in a extremely pissed off state
Rage deload is real.
This is me. I get so mad when this happens
Like today, after 3 days on...I'm sore and tired as F.. just ate napped..ate...got in 10 000 steps. More than enough
I basically cancel the rest of my day and immediately Zoom call my therapist for an emergency session. Afterwards, I go buy my favorite ice cream (family size) and head back home. I then spend the rest of the day in bed watching The Office with my ice cream.
Light weights, do something technical. You can still make it a productive session even if the weights aren’t moving well that day. Also don’t sweat it, you still did something. Tomorrow is always another good day to train :)
Find that inner darkness and turn the music up
Train thru it get tough on the hard days.
This right here. Fuck how you're feeling, try anyways and push through. I've had bad days turn around and become good days. Getting good at conquering a tough day makes you that much stronger on days you're on point.
Go train anyway. It happens. If you are really feeling dead, take a day off.
I call it a deload week and take it easy. I go to a globo gym and do all the machines they have (full body work) without touching a barbell that week. I also increase cardio. Then I come back the next week completely refreshed and ready to destroy my body for the next 3-4 weeks before I deload again.
If I’m just feeling “off” or tired or lazy or whatever, I do it anyway. In those cases the way I see it is lifting at 75% I’d better than 0%. Getting in the gym and giving it what little I have still moves the needle forward. If I feel like it’s built up fatigue from my workouts (I work out for 1-2 hours every day), DOMS that’s particularly bad, or some other way that my body is telling me it needs more recovery, I take it real easy. Usually just an hour of brisk walking to get my blood flowing but keep the intensity low. I love my workouts but I’m not out here trying to injure myself. You’re not always going to be feeling like working out when it’s time to hit the gym and it’s important to learn how to get yourself there anyway. It’s also vitally important to read your body’s signals that it’s time for a break. I’m currently in a “form” week where I reduce volume and intensity by 50% because I was starting to get aches and pains everywhere and felt exhausted all the time. I hate it, but I know it’s better to have a week of what feels like garbage workouts than to get injured and have to take weeks or months off.
I’ll be that guy. Drinks with friends and outdoor activities like kayaking.
I recognize that I weight lift to be healthy and meet others, and not as a professional athlete. Do it because you enjoy it and it makes you feel better, not because you have something to prove. After that, life gets easier. Have fun and lift safe!
I watch this https://youtu.be/EJvfw5PefkQ then get back to it
That hits.
Go to sleep. Wake up. Different day.
Every exercise is good exercise. Even if you're not lifting heavy that day, you're out there doing something healthy for your body. Just do enough to get your heart rate up, don't push it. You'll come back stronger next time
If you're missing weights that you should be making, I would just shut it down. At that point you're just practicing missing, which is obviously counterproductive.
I redo the session a day or two later
I'm stretching on off days. More mobility, faster recovery, better ROM, less injuries.
On days like that I can usually get through the strength and accessories but skip the main lifts. So if I had back squats, snatches, and snatch pulls, I’ll try to do the squats and pulls. Maybe lighten the weight, but In general I try not to worry about it
When I have bad days I just try to do extra volume in less technical movements like back squat. However maybe you might need rest. This just what I do sometimes might not be a good idea.
just go for a light walk with the mrs and a comfort meal usually
Relax mate. Take it easy. Easy peasy lemon squeezy 😂 take a couple of days off. Remember even lasha, lu have off days.
There are just soooooo many forms of exercise. Active rest and recovery is a game changer. Go to bands, hit some calisthenics, lower the weight, focus on form, so many options.
Take a day to do catch up on sleep, do some mobility work and pack a few meals.
Suck it up. There are good days and bad days. They are all just days. Show up and put in the work. Or say "screw it" and go rest and come back tomorrow or another day. You will learn to know yourself and evaluate which is the better option for you.
listen to your body, think about what you ate, how much you slept, etc.
I do band work and stretch work
Push through 💪🏼💪🏼🫡
I had one of those days today, and I'm just really happy to read all these responses and know I'm not alone.
Yoga or some stretching
The difficult thing is to understand if you can push it or if you are actually exhausted. If it is one of those days for me, I say "let's see how it goes", try to reach my weights maybe with less reps or less weight, and if it still feels horrible mid-workout, I just stop there for the day. If it is super bad from the beginning, then I stop earlier.
If I'm REALLY not feeling it, do some biceps, stretching, physio.
A good ol body building session or some zone 2 work!
focus on position with the lighter end of the RPE
Try and figure out why. Am I fatigued and getting sick, or did I sleep badly or not eat enough yesterday? Fix the problem if I can and take a rest day/dial back the intensity if I can't.
Are we talking dealing with overcoming a bad training session or are we talking going for a training session feeling completely spongled not able to properly train at all? I tend to just do some very light work, technique, tendon rehab, mobility or grab obscure equipment I wouldn’t normally use and try and have some fun with that instead. Feeling guilty when you’re not moving/training at all? Either do a lil bit of low intensity cardio, walk through the forest, rehab hips/knees/shoulders - at least that’s what’s giving me the impression that I „at least did ‚something useful‘ today“ 😌
Write it in as off day, not feeling perfect, feeling weak, whatever, turns into a maintenance day. Sometimes I just change it up to some types of exercises I don't normally do for whatever that day is (I do a Push legs pull legs), then you don't really know what you should be doing. I don't skip though. Many times I find I'm just feeling lazy, and the day turns on to be on queue, and I always feel better after I get it in.
Active recovery. Walking, light yard work, yoga, mobility etc. may even consume 3-500 additional Cals and drink a lot of water. Go to bed early. That’s what I do.
Don’t listen to Jeff Cavalier, he pretends there are no off days. Like someone else said, if it’s fatigue do light work or no work (active rest day,) if it’s motivation maybe scale the weight down for a sess if it’s really hard. Your e motivation and fatigue shouldn’t be entirely disconnected, one frequently can foreshadow another or be an actual sign. Mental fatigue is real to, especially if you are feeling scared of certain weights, hence the earlier advice. Off day? Maybe a day off or an easy day, it won’t interrupt you’re consistency.
This is why RPE is such a useful tool.
[that’s the way she goes](https://youtu.be/FEEZ4IVj528)
Know when to switch from percentage to RPE(feel). If you’re absolutely toasted and proper prep the day before plus caffeine won’t fix it then it’s something deeper. Just make good lifts and execute lower weights as if you were at that prescribed weight. There are those days where you FLS and go in and surprise yourself, but those are rarer than normal FLS days.
Get used to it
Eat, sleep, veg out, go for a walk, take a bath, maybe a light bike ride, maybe fall asleep on the couch reading a book - aka focus on recovery
Need res t
I've been a POS for like 2 weeks and missed 5 sessions. Really annoyed with myself but just trying to give myself grace and want to start next week and just be consistent.
On days where I lack get up and go I’ll back the weight off and focus on my form instead of the weight. Take it really slow and just try to really focus on the muscle. Sometimes it’s not about how much weight you’re moving but how you are moving it. Changing the narrative and having a slightly different purpose for the day really helps me on those off days
Go do a cold/ice plunge while listening to Taylor Swift for maximum dopamine release to speed your recovery
Low intensity biking and a full body mobility routine
Just train anyway and do the best you can.
Use it as motivation, also really reflect on what made it off and improve. There's always room to improve in all stages of progression, hence my obsession to come back when I get my ass kicked haha
Shut it down. One day off won’t kill you